


Queer Lodgings

by dwarrowdams



Series: Tolkientober [15]
Category: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: 'Bree are you going to stop stealing your chapter titles from versions of The Hobbit?', Gen, Hobbits, Nah probably not, Tea, Tolkientober
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-22
Updated: 2020-10-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:40:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27153962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dwarrowdams/pseuds/dwarrowdams
Summary: Avina has some unexpected guests.  Written for day 21 of Tolkientober (a Man).
Series: Tolkientober [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949476
Kudos: 2





	Queer Lodgings

**Author's Note:**

> Today's entry is fun because it has Men (as in the race) without having men (as in the gender). (Avina and Hild's son was going to make a cameo, but that was too much for me to write in one day.)
> 
> Anyways, here's some more self-indulgent content inspired by this week's Adventures in Middle-earth session. Our party met some Hobbits who'd gotten lost while traveling and my character (Eadgyd the Sad) told them to stop by and visit her family, whose place of residence was on the way to their destination. Another player thought that the concept of Hobbits having tea with some big, rough-mannered Beornings was hilarious (and tbh it really is).
> 
> So this one's dedicated to Bird, for giving me the idea to write about Hobbits and Beornings having tea together.

The knock on the door startled Avina out of her work.

She cursed under her breath, grabbing a cloth to clean up some of the tincture she’d spilled. “Just a moment!” she called as she tossed the cloth over the back of the chair. She muttered another curse as she tucked some strands of hair back into her kerchief as she rushed to the door.

She opened it and was surprised to see several very small people standing at the door. She’d seen only one before—Eadgyd’s friend, Lottie—but knew that these were Hobbits.

“Swithun Beornraed?” one of them asked, looking up at her with wide eyes.

Avina shook her head. “That’s my mother,” she said. “She’s out training some of the young archers—one of their usual instructors has fallen ill and she offered to step in. If you have need of her, you’re welcome to wait. I’m her daughter, Avina the Eloquent.”

The Hobbit who had spoken first turned to the rest of her party and they muttered amongst themselves. “She’s just the one we were told to ask for,” she explained. “We met someone while traveling—Eadgyd the Sad, she was. She told us we could stop here and visit her family if we wished.”

“Oh, Eadgyd’s my sister,” Avina said. “I’m glad she told you to come this way—I imagine your journey’s been difficult.”

All of the Hobbits nodded. “I’m Mindy Burrfoot,” one said, curtseying. “My wife and our children are going to settle by the Easterly Inn. We thought it might be nice to have a spot of tea with the locals.”

“Excellent,” Avina said. “Come on in—I was just about to put on the kettle.”

She rushed to the table and had most of her mess cleared away in a moment. “Sit wherever you like,” she said.

The Hobbits surveyed the chairs, clearly trying to find a way to get onto them without making themselves look silly.

“Oh, how silly of me—I’d forgotten a stool for you!” she said, nudging the kitchen stool next to the chairs. “I’ll grab some pillows for you to sit on as well.”

Mindy thanked her and began helping her wife and oldest child into the chairs as Avina tiptoed into the bedroom to get some pillows. She moved as quietly as she could, since it was still time for Anhaga’s nap, but the child woke anyways, staring up at her mother with bleary-eyes.

“Look at who woke up just in time for the excitement,” Avina said, setting the pillows down so she could lift Anhaga out of her cradle. “We have some guests—do you want to say hello to them?”

Anhaga didn’t respond, but followed Avina closely as she carried the pillows into the kitchen.

“There we are,” she said as she distributed them to the Hobbits. “That should make things a bit more comfortable.”

She hurried to put the kettle on, Anhaga still staying close to her. The Hobbits watched both mother and child curiously and Avina suspected that they’d never seen a human child before.

Avina put a gentle hand on Anhaga’s shoulder. “Can you say hi, darling?” she asked.

Anhaga stared at the Hobbits for a moment before waving shyly at them, after which she buried her face in her mother’s skirt.

“She’s quiet around new people,” Avina said to the Hobbits before turning her attention to her daughter. “Do you want to have tea with us or do you want to go back to the bedroom?”

Anhaga stepped back from Avina’s skirts before toddling back into the bedroom.

“She’s adorable,” Mindy said, smiling up at Avina.

Avina nodded. “We’re lucky she survived,” she said. “She came along weeks earlier than expected and we weren’t prepared for her to arrive when she did.”

As the water boiled, Avina told them the story of Anhaga’s birth—albeit with some of the more troubling details omitted for the children’s sake. Just after she’d finished and was beginning to pour some tea for everyone, the door swung open to reveal Hild with sweat dripping down her neck and her hair in a messy halo about her head.

Avina always loved seeing her wife with the residue of a good morning’s work on her. Hild always looked so content when she returned from the smithy, and that added a distinct element of allure to her disheveled state.

“Afternoon, love,” she said as she strode towards Avina.

The Hobbits stared at Hild in awe as she swept Avina into her arms and gave her a quick kiss. Hild looked at the hobbits, surprised by their presence, before turning to Avina. “You never told me we were having company."

“I didn’t know they were coming,” Avina replied. “Eadgyd sent them our way. Hild, this is Mindy Burrfoot and her family.”

“Ah!” Hild said. “In that case, it’s lovely to see you all! I’m Hild—formerly of Rohan, but currently of wherever my lovely wife needs me most.”

She held out her hand, waiting for one of the Hobbits to shake it, but pulled it back when she realized it was still grimy from the smithy. “Ah, that’s a poor way to introduce myself,” she said. “Let me go out and wash up and we’ll try this again.”

Without another word, she stepped out of the house, leaving several surprised Hobbits in her wake.

“We, ah...don’t always bother with formalities,” Avina said, flushing slightly. “None of us except my mother—and she’d have my head if she knew I invited you in without cleaning the kitchen first…”

“No, no, it isn’t that!” Mindy said. “It’s just...your wife is very tall.”

“She is,” Avina said fondly. “She’s the only woman I know who’s taller than Eadgyd.”

“Is she a giant?” one of the young Hobbits asked.

Avina smiled at their response. “No, darling, she isn’t,” she said. “Although she is very tall.”

“But you’re a lot shorter than she is,” another young Hobbit said. “Are you sure she’s not a giant?”

“Absolutely positive,” Avina said as she set mugs before them, grateful that her experiments with pottery had left her with several small mugs (although they were still rather too large for the Hobbits). “I’m just very short for a human.”

“But you’re still so tall!” the same Hobbit child said.

“You’d be the first to say that,” Avina said, smiling to herself as she poured the tea. “But if you ever meet more Big People, you’ll see that I’m not.”

Before the Hobbits could respond, Hild returned, her face and hands sparkling clean. “Let’s try this again,” she said as she approached the table. “I’m Hild—pleasure to meet you all.”

She held out a freshly washed hand, which Mindy tentatively shook. The rest of the Hobbits followed suit, murmuring greetings as they shook Hild’s massive-looking hand.

Once they were done with introductions, Hild sat down beside Avina, sighing contentedly as she did so. “Well, I’m glad you stopped by,” she said to the Hobbits. “Aside from Eadgyd’s friend Lottie, you’re the first Hobbits I’ve ever met.”

The sound of Lottie’s name led the Hobbits to perk up. “Yes, Lottie’s a cousin of mine!” Mindy said. “She was the one who gave us directions to the Easterly Inn!”

“Lottie’s wonderful, isn’t she?” Hild said. “She stopped by just a little while ago to talk with Eadgyd and she had us all charmed.”

The Hobbits smiled, clearly eager to hear more of Hild’s stories about Lottie.

As her wife talked, Avina sipped her tea and sighed with relief, glad that Hild had found a topic of conversation that put the Hobbits at ease in what was presumably a very strange place.

**Author's Note:**

> Oh goodness, only one more week (plus an extra day)! I'm excited, but a little sad that this is going to be over.
> 
> Please comment if you enjoyed!
> 
> Tumblr: dwarrowdams  
> Twitter: @_tenderqueer


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